You better not judge!

Judge not, unless you want to be judged. What exactly does this or could this mean in the American society? Are we suppose to take this as being the same as “if you are happy for others, then happy things will befall you”? We are told to heed these sayings in order to secure a better life. I have personally seen the application of these sayings create better lives for people. But my question remains, is there a realistic way to continuously follow these sayings in the capitalist, competitive, individualistic society we live?

When I tried to answer this question I realized there were many "sayings" that have been impressed upon us as “do or die” requirements. How many of these things are realistically relevant? Therein lies the reason I have chosen to “shed” away those teachings I was told were right and true, in order to see what still remains. And from what remains I have been building (or at least trying my hardest to build) only those things that have shown themselves to be true, productive, harmless, and helpful to myself and all those in THE WORLD around me.

The Resilience of the Human is Amazing

In my efforts to sleep through the night, a sentence continuously resonated off the many sides of my brain over and over and over from the moment it woke me up at 3am this morning. "The Resilience of the Human is Amazing".

Within the confines of moisturized dirt lies an energy, a spirit that has the ability to move, make, and destroy, all the while knowing it's time within that flesh will come to an end. In the face of oppression it continues to breathe, in the face of genocide it slowly limps forward, and in the face of decapitating natural disasters it stands firm. If there was ever something a human had to be proud of, it would be that.

I sit here today asking myself, "Where does this resilience come from?" Any moment, on every day, at every striking second devastation is crushing humans. Frustration at the unknown brings about depression. And the lack of control causes us to grapple at some form of control in our lives that at one time or another causes us to walk down the lonely path of hopelessness. We do all we can to hold onto something, to claim something, to demand some type of control over our lives. Without this we would most definitely go insane. The delusion of control is the fog we all live our lives in from one day to the next.

Why do we keep moving forward when all that we know for sure is that sadness and pain will continue to reign? The answer lies deep within us, another part of life and existence we have no control over. It just lies there keeping us strong, moving us along the continuum humans have called time.

Religion seeks to answer these questions and thankfully so, but what about the questions that religion does not answer? Questions like, "Why are certain humans able to comfortably live on this speck of dirt, while others must live in constant poverty of life, liberty, & happiness?" Neither chose which way to live, it just seemingly happened that way.

Honestly, I ask myself everyday, why was I born when I was born where I was born? I did not to choose any of that. I had no control over none of that, but yet I am expected to control some of that. Again, I ask, "Where does this resilience to want to control any of it come from?" It was not my doing, but yet I have something within that wants to wrestle with control of it.

Resilience is part of TRUTH.